Quantifying the impact of shale

UNCONVENTIONAL PRODUCTION is
controversial due to environmental concerns, including water safety and earthquake activity, but while shale exploration
is sometimes regarded negatively, it is
important to consider the positive impact
the shale industry has had on the domestic
and global economy.

Oil and gas production in the United
States can be broken down into two periods: pre and post shale. The timeline of
each period is observable in Figure 1, which
shows the oil and gas production in the
United States split by the source of supply
along with the light oil content. Before the
“shale era,” US production was decreasing,
where the main contributor to production
was conventional fields. During this period,
the US relied heavily on oil imports and